Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Claim: Trump’s executive orders on Covid-19 economic relief are illegal. Fact check: Mixed

On Saturday, President Trump signed three memorandums and one executive order that are designed to help Americans dealing with the economic downturn as a result of the coronavirus lock-down. The three memorandums address student loan payment relief, deferring payroll tax obligations, and using emergency funds to provide economic relief to states and people who are unemployed. The executive order deals with rent relief. The legality of the memorandum on the use of emergency funds for relief has been questioned, and may be on shakier legal ground compared to the other measures. The three other actions may fall within the president's purview because the president has the authority to delay student loan payments and defer taxes in times of disaster, and the order on rent relief is less sweeping than some initially thought.

The order on rent relief states: "Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Director of CDC shall consider whether any measures temporarily halting residential evictions of any tenants for failure to pay rent are reasonably necessary to prevent the further spread of COVID-19." The memorandum also states that the heads of other agencies should identify funds to be used to help renters and should try to help renters avoid eviction. It does not state exactly what actions or funds are to be used, and it doesn't impose strict requirements on these agencies to take a specific action.


Trump may not have the authority to create enhanced unemployment programs because the Stafford Disaster Relief Act allows the president to give unemployment aid only to those not eligible for other unemployment benefits, and it does not allow the amount given to unemployed people to exceed the normal amount of unemployment benefits given to them by the state.

In the memorandums on student loans and tax deferment, Trump referenced specific laws that allow the president to delay or defer payments in times of disaster or economic hardship. The president can delay student loans for up to three years for people who experience economic hardship. Additionally, the president can defer collection of federal taxes during a disaster.

Read More

Presidential Incapacity and the Limits of the 25th Amendment

Lynn Schmidt explains how a strong 25th Amendment would protect the presidency itself "by ensuring smooth transitions and public confidence in executive leadership..."

Getty Images, Pool

Presidential Incapacity and the Limits of the 25th Amendment

The authors of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution established and explained the complete order of presidential succession, as well as a series of contingency plans to fill any executive vacancies. It was written as a response to the weaknesses found in Article II after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and what was learned about the inadequacies related to presidential illnesses and hospitalizations.

It feels like the time is not only right but needed for another updated response.

Keep ReadingShow less
The State of Health in America: A Political and Scientific Crossfire

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. testifies before the Senate Finance Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on September 04, 2025 in Washington, DC.

(Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The State of Health in America: A Political and Scientific Crossfire

At the heart of the Trump administration’s health agenda is a dramatic reorientation of public health priorities. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared during a Senate hearing last week:

“We at HHS are enacting a once-in-a-generation shift from a sick-care system, to a true health care system that tackles the root causes of chronic disease.”

“Make America Healthy Again” has been met with both praise and fierce resistance. Republican Senator Mike Crapo supported the initiative, saying:

Keep ReadingShow less
When Politicians Pick Voters: Why Gerrymandering Is Undermining Democracy

An image depicting a map of a district with unusually shaped boundaries, highlighting how areas are divided in a non-compact or fragmented way.

AI generated

When Politicians Pick Voters: Why Gerrymandering Is Undermining Democracy

The partisan fight to draw maps that determine how Americans are represented has entered a dangerous spiral. Texas is racing ahead with a mid-decade congressional redraw designed to lock in additional seats after President Donald J. Trump called upon state lawmakers to find five seats. California’s leaders responded in kind to offset the Texas map, but will hold a special election in which voters must decide whether to put aside the state’s Congressional maps drawn by an independent redistricting commission for the next three election cycles. Other states are openly weighing similar moves. But this “map wars” logic is dangerous, and voters from all backgrounds stand to lose as districts harden into safe seats and politicians’ accountability to voters further withers.

Large majorities of Americans say that gerrymandering — which lets politicians pick their voters instead of the other way around — is unfair and a problem. When politicians and party insiders draw their own districts, the maps can be engineered to protect incumbents, not voters. As a result, gerrymandering contributes to the erosion of public confidence in elections. It lessens people’s sense that change can happen, and reduces the ability of voters to hold leaders accountable.

Keep ReadingShow less
Is Trump Serious About Banning Mail-In Ballots… or Is It Rage-Bait?
Photo by Tiffany Tertipes on Unsplash.

Is Trump Serious About Banning Mail-In Ballots… or Is It Rage-Bait?

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump took to Truth Social, claiming he was going to “lead a movement to get rid of mail-in ballots,” adding that he would sign an executive order ahead of the 2026 midterms. However, Trump has yet to sign such an order.

Keep ReadingShow less